Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
March 23, 2011
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See a pretty version of this newsletter: http://bit.ly/dIB3xY
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The piece below is excerpted from my book
*PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA*
available at Amazon: http://bit.ly/Pronoia
or Powells: http://bit.ly/PronoiaPowells
LOVE BOMB
I feel closer to you when I imagine that all of us are collaborating to fight
monumental dangers. The telepathic links among us heat up when our
emotions register the possibility that a global cataclysm could wipe us
out.
That's why I think of the nuclear bomb as a gift. It's a terrible and sacred
taboo that mobilizes our love for each other better than any other
symbol.
It's the superhuman profanity on which all life depends and against which
all values must be tested. Shadowing every one of our personal actions,
the bomb is the fascinating blasphemy that won't stop ranting unless
we're all very, very good.
In the quiet abyss of our imaginations, we unconsciously worship it,
believing in its extravagant potency as if it were a god. It is the most
spiritual, most supernatural material object in the world, a fetish that has
the power to literally change all life on earth instantly and forever. We
agree to be possessed by it, to be haunted by its apparition above all
other apparitions. No other spectacle inspires more perverse attraction.
And yet it's secret. How few of us have ever stood next to the magic
body of a hydrogen bomb in a missile silo or laboratory -- breathed in its
smell, touched it, communed with its actual life. Its presence among us is
rumor and mystery, like flying saucers and the afterlife. We hear stories.
At night our dreams turn the bomb into the philosopher's stone, the pearl
of great price, the doppelganger of the messiah, the violent ecstasy of
religious conversion. Our blood is alive to its alchemy, alert to its offer of
the blinding flash of irreversible illumination. We recognize the bomb as
our impossible teacher because it harbors a dangerous light that seems to
mimic the sun.
It's ours. We made it. We imagined it into existence so we could
remember that we are all one body. When I fantasize the bomb vaporizing
me into its pure primeval heat and radiation, I remember that you and I
are made of the same stuff. The bomb frees us to imagine that we all live
and die together, that we are all born out of Adam, the indivisible
hermaphrodite god of our species. And we can return now because we
never left.
We need the bomb. We need the bomb because only the tease of the
biggest, most original sin can heal us. The bomb is a blind, a fake, a trick
memory we're sending ourselves from the future that shocks us better
than all the abstract devils.
Let's call the bomb a love that's too big for us to understand yet. Let's
say it's the raging creative life of a cleansing disease that wants to cure
us so it doesn't have to kill us. Let's say it's the last judgment that
promises not to come true if we can figure out what it means.
We have genetic potentials and divine powers so undreamed of that they
will feel like magic when they finally bloom. But they may remain partially
dormant in us until we're terrified not just of our individual deaths but
also of the extinction of the human archetype.
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Bless the fear. Praise the danger. O God of Good and Evil Light, let the
ugly power fascinate us all now. Let it fix our dread so precisely that we
become one ferocious, potently concentrated magician, a single guerrilla
mediator casting a spell to bind the great Satan bomb. There will be no
nuclear war.
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
PRONOIA SNEAKS INTO THE MAINSTREAM
A lead actor in the CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" told *The New
York Times* he's reading my book "Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia."
Looks like he's making a very pronoiac movie, too; it's called
"Happythankyoumoreplease."
He says: "I didn't know the movie was going to be about gratitude, but
that's what it's about: going from 'What's missing?' to 'Everything I see is
a blessing.'"
http://tinyurl.com/4vav2nf
THE FASCINATION WITH CRIME SEEMS TO BE FADING
The number of serial murders is dwindling, along with the public's
fascination with them. The golden age of serial killers is probably past.
http://tinyurl.com/6hgl7s5
STRETCH YOUR MIND SOME MORE, BABY
A Physicist Explains Why Parallel Universes May Exist
http://tinyurl.com/4z7d5p8
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They are not advertisements,
and I get no kickbacks.)
Please tell me your own personal nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning March 24
Copyright 2011 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Were you under the impression that the sky is
completely mapped? It's not. Advances in technology are unveiling a
nonstop flow of new mysteries. In a recent lecture, astronomer Joshua
Bloom of the University of California described the explosion of wonder.
One particular telescope, for example, detects 1.5 million transient
phenomena every night, and an average of 10 of those turn out to be
previously undiscovered. Reporting on Bloom's work, Space.com
compared astronomers' task to "finding a few needles in a giant haystack
night after night." I see this challenge as resembling your imminent future,
Aries. Mixed in with all the chatter and hubbub, there are some scattered
gems out there -- rich revelations and zesty potentials. Will you have the
patience to pinpoint them?
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): If you're thinking of calling on a ghost to
provide you with information, make sure you know how to banish it when
you're finished milking it. If you're considering a trek into the past to seek
some consolation or inspiration, drop breadcrumbs as you go so you can
find your way back to the present when it's time to return. Catch my
drift, Taurus? It's fine to draw on the old days and the old ways, but don't
get lost or stuck there.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): From an astrological point of view, it's a
favorable time for people to give you gifts and perks and blessings. You
have my permission to convey that message to your friends and
associates. Let them know it's in their interest to be generous toward
you. The truth, as I see it, is that they will attract rewards for themselves,
some unexpected, if they help you. So what's your role in this dynamic?
Be modest. Be grateful. Be gracious. At the same time, rake it all in with
supreme confidence that you deserve such an outpouring.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Nobel Prizes are awarded to geniuses in a
variety of fields for work they've done to elevate science and culture. But
have you heard of Ig Nobel Prizes? The Annals of Improbable Research
hands them out to eccentrics whose work it deems useless but amusing.
For instance, one recipient was honored for investigating how impotency
drugs help hamsters recover quickly from jet lag. Another award went to
engineers who developed a remote-control helicopter to collect whale
snot. In 2000, physicist Andre Geim won an Ig Nobel Prize for using
magnetism to levitate a frog. Unlike all of his fellow honorees, however,
Geim later won a Nobel Prize for his research on a remarkable substance
called graphene (tinyurl.com/NobelGraphene). I think you'll soon have a
resemblance to him, Cancerian. Some of your efforts will be odd and
others spectacular; some will be dismissed or derided and others will be
loved and lauded.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): If you have ever fantasized about setting up a
booth at the foot of an active volcano and creating balloon animals for
tourists' kids, now is an excellent time to get started on making that
happen. Same is true if you've ever thought you'd like to be a rodeo
clown in Brazil or a stand-up comedian at a gambling casino or a mentor
who teaches card tricks and stage magic to juvenile delinquents. The
astrological omens suggest that playfulness and risk-taking would
synergize well right now. There's even a chance that if you found a way
to blend them, it would lead to financial gain.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You've arrived at a phase in your cycle when
you'll have the opportunity to scope out new competitors, inspirational
rivals, and allies who challenge you to grow. Choose wisely! Keep in mind
that you will be giving them a lot of power to shape you; they will be
conditioning your thoughts about yourself and about the goals you regard
as worthy of your passions. If you pick people of low character or weak
values, they'll bring you down. If you opt for hard workers with high
ideals, they'll raise you up.
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FREE SAMPLE OF MY AUDIO OFFERINGS
If you'd like to get an idea of what my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES
are like, tune in to my free podcast "You Are a Prophet."
http://bit.ly/YouAreAProphet
"You Are a Prophet" is a meditation about how your imagination is your
greatest resource and treasure.
Find out more about the EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES at
http://RealAstrology.com.
The weekly forecasts are also available by phone:
1-877-873-4888
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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): "There's no key to the universe," writes Swami
Beyondananda. But that shouldn't lead us to existential despair or
hopeless apathy, adds the Swami. "Fortunately, the universe has been left
unlocked," he concludes. In other words, Libra, there's no need for a key
to the universe! I offer you this good news because there's a similar
principle at work in your life. You've been banging on a certain door,
imagining that you're shut out from what's inside. But the fact is that the
door is unlocked and nothing is stopping you from letting yourself in.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): When you travel to Mozambique, the Ministry
of Fish and Wildlife gives you a warning about the frequency of human
encounters with lions out in nature. "Wear little noisy bells so as to give
advanced warning to any lions that might be close by so you don't take
them by surprise," reads the notice you're handed. I'm certain, Scorpio,
that no matter where you are in the coming week -- whether it's
Mozambique or elsewhere -- you won't have to tangle with beasts as long
as you observe similar precautions. So please take measures to avoid
startling goblins, rascals, and rogues. If you visit a dragon's domain, keep
your spirit light and jingly. If you use a shortcut that requires you to pass
through the wasteland, sing your favorite nonsense songs as you hippety-
hop along.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Few things make me more excited than
being able to predict good tidings headed your way. That's why, as I
meditated on your upcoming astrological aspects, I found myself
teetering on the edge of ecstasy. Here's what I foresee: a renaissance of
pleasure . . . an outbreak of feeling really fine, both physically and
emotionally . . . and an awakening of your deeper capacity to experience
joy. Here's your mantra for the week, generated by my friend Rana Satori
Stewart: yum yum yum yum yum / yum yum yum yum yummy yum / yum
yum yum yum yummy yummy yum yum.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): CNN reported on two neo-Nazi skinheads
from Poland, a married couple, who discovered they were actually Jews. It
turned out that during World War II, the truth about their origins had been
hidden by their parents for fear of persecution. Years later, when the
Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw informed them that they were
members of the group they had hated for so long, they were shocked.
Since then, they have become observant Jews who worship at an
orthodox synagogue. The new perspective you'll be getting about your
own roots may not be as dramatic as theirs, Capricorn. But I bet it will
lead to a shift in your self-image. Are you ready to revise your history?
(More info: tinyurl.com/Ex-skinheads.)
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): My astrological colleague Antero Alli says
that a lot of good ideas occur to him while he's taking a shower. He also
finds frequent inspiration while riding his bike. Why, then, does he not
enjoy biking in the rain? He doesn't know. I bring this up, Aquarius,
because you're entering a phase of your cycle when flashes of insight and
intuition are likely to erupt at a higher rate than usual. I suggest you
aggressively put yourself in every kind of situation that tends to provoke
such eruptions -- including ones, like maybe riding your bike in the rain,
that you haven't tried before.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): A Canadian man named William Treble once
found over a thousand four-leaf clovers in a single day. Niamh Bond, a
British baby, was born on the tenth day of the tenth month of 2010 -- at
exactly 10:10 a.m. and 10 seconds. My friend Allan told me he was
driving in suburbia the other day when two white cats bolted across the
road right in front of him. And yet as lucky as all that might sound, it
pales in comparison to the good fortune that's headed your way, Pisces.
Unlike their luck, which was flashy but ultimately meaningless, yours will
be down-to-earth and have practical value.
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HOMEWORK: What is the first thing you want? What's the last thing? Are
they related in any way? Testify at Truthrooster@gmail.com.
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WANT TO GET YOUR CHART DONE?
I'm not doing personal charts, but I highly recommend my astrological
colleague, RO LOUGHRAN. Her approach closely matches my own. In our
many discussions about astrology over the years, we've had a major
influence on each other's work.
Ro utilizes a blend of well-trained intuition, emotional warmth, and a high
degree of technical proficiency in horoscope interpretation; she is skilled
at exploring the mysteries of your life's purpose and nurturing your
connection with your own inner wisdom.
Ro is based in California, but can do phone consultations and otherwise
work with you regardless of geographic boundaries.
Ro's website is at
http://YourSoulJourney.com
She can also be reached at roloughran@comcast.net
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2011 Rob Brezsny
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